Unfortunate Event or Unforeseen Luck?
by stillhiding
Summary: AU: Gail is convinced into going to a music festival with others from her college dorm and is admittidly having a good time until a stranger ruins her night. Thankfully, she meets someone who is willing to lend a hand.
1. The Concert

It was torturously humid and the music of some performers were borderline eardrum-shattering but overall Gail was having a good time. The Digital Dreams Festival was on its last running day and everyone was partying harder than ever. The beer was flowing, the people were dancing, and boy were they attractive as hell. She was glad that her friends from her dorm floor, Andy, Chris and Dov, convinced her to go.

The sweaty bodies began to rub together and the smell of alcohol was everywhere. The group decided it was a better idea to take a break from the tight crowd near the stage and head back onto the open lawn of the amphitheatre.

Gail rested her back on the grass, feeling the thump of the music rock the ground under her as she talked to the others over the loud music. "We should definitely head back to the smelly people during the last set; the last one is always the best"

"Yea for sure. And if I don't bring anyone back to the dorm tonight I'll be pretty upset" Dov said.

"I need a rebound from Luke, so you guys need to be my wingmen for the rest of the night" Andy sighed, looking around for possible choices.

"Well how about these guys walking this way? Any of interest?" Chris asked her, nodding towards the two obviously drunk guys.

As they approached the group, Gail looked up and scrunched her nose at the overpowering smell of alcohol and marijuana. She rolled her eyes and prayed that Andy had the decency and self-respect to know that these guys were total idiots.

"Hello fellow party people!" one practically screamed.

The guy beside him opened his mouth to speak, but before he had a chance, he hurled his once-digested beer all over Gail's shirt.

She lurched forward off of her back and sat up, taking in what had just happened. "_What the fuck you fucking drunk asshole! You fucking puked your guts all over my fucking shirt, you pig!_" Gail was furious. What started off as an amazing day quickly became ruined by some incoherent moron who couldn't hold his alcohol.

"Shit. Come on, I'll come to the restroom with you and we'll try to wash that off" Andy offered.

"No, no, it's okay. You stay here and have fun" And with that she was off on her own storming through countless people.

"So fucking stupid. If you can't hold down your drink then don't fucking drink. Simple as that" she mumbled to herself as she pushed her way through the door and towards the sinks.

A toilet in one of the stalls behind her flushed and Gail looked behind her using the mirror, seeing a tall brunette confidently walk out and stop at the sink beside her.

"Yikes. Rough night?" the girl asked as she eyed the shirt.

"Some people are idiots and those idiots should not be able to stand within five feet of me" she rambled on, stretching her shirt towards the faucet to run it under the water.

"Here, let me help you out" the brunette said, grabbing paper towel from the dispenser and rubbing it onto the shirt.

Their eyes met awkwardly and Gail couldn't help but notice that although they were like any other brown eyes, hers had a certain twinkle that made her shyly blush and look away. "T-thanks" she stuttered, mentally cursing herself for sounding stupid.

"I'm Holly"

"Gail. And I was having a surprisingly great time until Sir Pukes-a-lot ruined everything" She eyed the other girl carefully. There was something about her that made it irresistibly hard not to stare. Her long, wavy brown hair flowed down her shoulders and suited her perfectly. Then there was the way her lips moved when she spoke; her mouth slightly raised on the left.

"…Gaaaail. Helllooo. Earth to Gail" Holly said, waving her hand in front of the blonde's face.

She snapped out of her daze and blushed, wondering how long she had been staring for. "I'm sorry, what'd you say?"

"I said this obviously isn't working. _But_, lucky for you, I kind of like your snappy weirdness and also happen to have been here before and now carry an extra change of clothes to these shindigs" she repeated, reaching into her backpack and pulling out a t-shirt. "Here, just put this on"

"No, it's really nice of you but I can't just keep your shirt"

"Oh heck no. This is my favourite shirt. We're exchanging numbers and you're going to give it back to me at a later date" Holly grinned.

Gail rolled her eyes. "And _I'm_ the weird one"

"Do you want the shirt or not?"

"Yes Holly, I just want to get out of this damn puke-stained shirt. I think the smell is getting worse"

"Okay here, it's going to go all over your hair if you do it yourself"

Gail watched quietly as Holly's long fingers gripped the bottom of her shirt. She felt the cool air hit her bare skin as the shirt was lifted off of her and suddenly she felt awkward standing in front of this ridiculously pretty girl she just met. For a moment Gail could've sworn she saw the brunette glance at her chest, but she brushed it off and they stared at each other silently, Gail's eyes trailing to Holly's lips as they were moistened by her tongue.

Holly broke the stare and cleared her throat, holding the shirt up between her two fingers as a grossed-out expression crossed her face. "What do you want me to do with it?"

"Uh, just toss it out I guess. I never liked it anyway" As Holly turned to throw the stained shirt in the bin Gail scrambled to get the girl's shirt over her head. It smelt of vanilla and was way softer than her other one had been. She eyed herself in the mirror and brushed her fingers through her hair.

"Suits you" Holly commented.

"Yea, you might just not get it back"

"Nope, phone, now. Here's mine" she said, holding her phone out to Gail who giggled at her love for the shirt.

For a moment, Gail thought of putting a fake number in Holly's phone, but she glanced up at the brunette and decided against it. She wasn't a drunken fool hitting on her, so why not? After all, they would only talk about meeting up for the shirt and then that would be it. "Here you go. Thanks again. I know we don't really know each other so that was pretty cool of you" she said, swapping phones.

"It's no big deal" Holly replied as she shyly tucked her phone into her pocket. "Anyway, my friends are probably thinking some psycho stole me away so I guess I should get back out there. Try to stay away from those drunken idiots" she laughed, and headed out the restroom.

Gail rested her palms against the counter and smiled to herself. She found it strange that she so easily was able to talk to a complete stranger, but hey, maybe it was just the fact that concerts bring people together. The restroom door swung open and her eyes darted towards it, slightly hoping that it was the brunette waltzing in again, but the glimmer of hope disappeared when it was only another blonde.

She found her friends and sat back down onto the grass between Chris and Andy. "Hey"

Chris did a double take and looked at her confusingly. "Wasn't your shirt white?"

"Yea, I uh, there was a girl in the restroom and she had an extra"

"Well I hope you bought her a beer or something" Dov chimed.

"No, I didn't actually, but I have her number so I guess when she picks up the shirt I owe her one"

* * *

Later on that night, Gail climbed into her bed and placed her phone on the nightstand. As she felt herself drifting off to sleep she was suddenly was jolted awake by the loud vibration beside her. Picking up the phone she looked at the name on the screen and tried to stifle her laugh. 'Hot Brunette With The Kick-Ass Shirt'. She opened the text and read Holly's message.

_H: Really Gail? 'Dreamy Blonde With The Nice Rack'? I would've used 'Annoyed And Agitated Blonde Who Took My Favourite Shirt'._

Gail remembered back to when she thumbed her way across Holly's phone screen. Okay, maybe it wasn't the best name, but she was pretty sure she _had _been checking her out. She typed a response onto her phone.

_G: You know, I might just keep it…but I GUESS I owe you a drink since you were kind of awesome._

_H: I'm kind of awesome all the time…but that doesn't mean I'm letting you keep it_

_G: Alright 'Hot Brunette' don't get too full of yourself. I have a busy school schedule so how about you come by next Saturday?_

_H: Hard to resist a 'Dreamy Blonde', so I GUESS_ _next Saturday works._


	2. Room 15

**So because of my indecisiveness…I'm unsure of whether this will be a three shot or turn into a larger story.**

* * *

Holly walked down the narrow hallway as she searched for room number 15. The smell of dirty laundry and some sort of odd food filled the hall; it was definitely worse than a well-kept dorm like the one she was used to. When she reached the burgundy door with a black-plated '15' she knocked gently and patiently waited for the girl on the other side.

It had been a week since the music festival and between that time Holly and the blonde had only been in contact because of the shirt that she still had. As she stood outside the room, she began to think back to when they had briefly met. When she walked out of the stall her eyes met beautifully long platinum-coloured hair; it was shockingly suiting for the girl's features. As she got to the sink she turned her focus to what she was doing and that's when she had noticed. Her eyes were absolutely the most gorgeous colour she'd ever seen. The hair and eyes complimented her pale skin beautifully and made her look like some sort of porcelain super model. Lending Gail her "favourite" shirt was easily the best decision she'd ever made. Okay, maybe the shirt didn't mean much to her, but it was enough of a lie to get her to see those bright blue eyes for a second time and that made it a lie she could live with.

The door violently swung open and Gail stood on the inside. "Hey"

"Hi"

"Hey"

"You said that already" she smirked. "Your hall smells really bad by the way"

"God I know, there's a couple hockey players that live down the hall. We've slipped messages under their doors and everything, but the airheads don't seem to be getting it so I've had to stock up on candles and air fresheners. Anyway, come in"

As Holly walked past Gail she stopped at the end of the hallway and took a look around the dorm. The room was small, yet it seemed like a typical homey room for a college student. She noticed two doors on the inside, one which presumably was hers and the other possibly belonging to a roommate.

"My roommate is visiting her family this weekend" she commented, seemingly sensing Holly's curiosity. "I um, don't know if you're hungry but I ordered pizza cause I am…so that should be here soon. You can stay if you'd like. I kind of owe you a beer or something so why not have some free food too"

For a moment, the sensible side of Holly's mind told her that she should probably just take the shirt and go back to her regular everyday life, but somewhere deep inside she couldn't ignore the temptation to take the blonde up on her offer and get to know her a little bit more with whatever time life gave her. "If it's not too much trouble then alright, but your kindness doesn't give you the rights to keeping my shirt, just so you know" she said.

Gail threw her hands on Holly's shoulders and her blue eyes pierced through her brown ones. "Holly, you saved me from wearing and smelling like someone else's puke all night. It's the least I can do, but keep up those smart remarks and I'll send you home without it"

When Gail had released her hold on Holly, the brunette walked over to the couch and sat down, making herself comfortable as she raised her feet onto the wooden table.

"I definitely wouldn't sit there if I were you. My roommate had her boyfriend over before she left and god knows what they were up to" She shivered in disgust as if picturing it in her head.

Quickly, Holly stood up from the couch with a grossed out look on her face, causing Gail to laugh. The laugh didn't seem fake or forced; it was genuine along with the smile that went with it and Holly thought she could pass out with how flawless the blonde was.

"Come on, we'll watch TV in my room until the pizza gets here" she suggested, sauntering off towards the fridge and pulling out two beers before heading into another room.

Holly couldn't help but stare at the way Gail's hips moved with every stride, like every move was punctuated by her perfectly rounded bum. Her eyes trailed past her shorts and to her exposed legs which were nicely toned; she could only assume that she worked out in order to keep them that beautifully shaped. '_Snap out of it Stewart_' she chanted to herself. They walked into the bedroom and she followed Gail onto the bed. "So this is where the magic happens" Holly joked. '_Nice Holly, make sexual jokes to a girl you don't even know_' she commented to herself and rolled her eyes.

"If by 'magic' you mean sleep, then yes, this is the place, but other than that it's remained celibate so if that was your line you've gotta try harder than that" a smirk crept onto her face.

Suddenly Holly felt flustered. "No, I didn't mean…that's not what I -"

Laughter ensued and Gail responded, "Relax you weirdo, I'm just pulling your leg"

Holly took a swig from her bottle to ease the nerves of being on the gorgeous blonde's bed with the girl sitting close enough beside her so that their knees touched. Knowing that she should probably quit while ahead and end the current topic of conversation, Holly attempted to change the subject. She turned her body so that she was facing the blonde who shifted as well so that they were sitting face-to-face. "So, what are you studying?"

"Criminal justice. If you search 'Peck' you should find that my decision to do so is pretty self-explanatory. How about you? Are you in school?"

"Last year in Pathology at U of T. No name to go along with the reason, but it's Stewart"

"So Holly Stewart, why something gross and morbid for such a sunshine and rainbow kind of girl?" Gail asked.

She choked on her beer and managed to find her voice after being taken aback by the unexpected question. "Excuse me?" she coughed out.

Confusion visibly spread across Gail's face as she responded, "You're all happy and excited about everything…why Pathology?"

Holly sensed her face burn up. '_Of course she wasn't talking about you being interested in girls, stupid. How would she even know?_' she said, mentally cursing herself for the overreaction and composing her thoughts before answering. "It makes me feel like I know where the last puzzle piece goes, you know? And instead of just assuming an answer by looking at whatever the thing being examined is, I get to take a closer look with all the science to prove it. Examining old bones, taking and testing samples, it makes you realize that you don't know the full story until you get to know every little detail"

"You're spewing so much nerd that it's making my head spin"

"It's probably just the beer" Holly laughed. Her eyes followed Gail's blue ones and she watches as they flicker from Holly's eyes to lips. For a second, she swears the blonde is leaning closer towards her, but they're cut off by a loud knock at the door.

"_PIZZA!_" Gail yelled, hopping off her bed and leaving Holly dazed as she exited the room hurriedly.

Holly took a deep breath and pulled herself off Gail's bed; a place she'd never ever be again. She wasn't sure why the thought bothered her so much. '_It's not like we know each other anyways; I BARELY know this girl. It's just a stupid crush and I need to get over it because I'm reading into this way more than I should be_'. She moved out to the kitchen and sat on one of the chairs by the table. Shortly, she was joined again by the blonde who was holding tightly onto the box of pizza like it was the last one to ever be made; she was cute, in an odd and childish sort of way.

Gail placed the box on the table and opened it in front of Holly, displaying a cheesy half vegetarian and half pepperoni pizza that smelt absolutely delicious. "Bon appétit, ma chérie!" she said, causing Holly to giggle.

"You do know what that means, right? The 'ma chérie' part?"

"Uhh, nope. But everyone always says it sooo…just eat up nerd"

* * *

Just beer and pizza had ended up including heading back to Gail's bed to sit awkwardly close to each other and watch a Walking Dead marathon – which they had agreed on because, according to Gail, Holly loved dead things and she simply just thought it was cool. Three episodes later, Holly checked her phone and noticed it was already 9 p.m. "Crap, I should get going. I have a midterm that I really need to study for" she said, rising off of the bed and stretching her arms over her head. She chanced a look at the other girl, noticing that the blonde's eyes had darted to the exposed skin where her shirt had ridden up.

"Ugh, who actually studies nowadays?" she joked, rolling her eyes. "Alright, let me walk you out.

They got to the door and Holly turned the knob, opening it and stepping out of the dorm room.

"Oh shit, your shirt! Give me a second to go grab it"

Holly bit at her lip as she quickly pondered leaving the shirt. `Gail, it`s okay, keep it. It looks better on you anyway" she smiled. Her heart began to beat for what felt like a million times a second. '_You're never going to see this girl again Holly_' her mind argued. Caught in the moment, Holly leaned forward and placed a light kiss on Gail's soft cheek, barely brushing her lips against the girl's face. "Have a good night. Thanks for having me stay" She gave a slight wave and began to head down the hallway, hearing the door shut behind her. When she reached the elevator she released the breath that she hadn't realised she was holding and turned to take one last look at room 15.


	3. Denial

**Thank you guys for all of your amazing responses to the story! I caved and decided to make it longer than a three shot.**

**P.S. I haven't forgotten about This Thing, I'm just kinda stuck but it IS being worked on, I promise.**

**P.P.S. FINALLY FIGURED IT OUT**

* * *

Gail stood there silently behind her door. Her cheek that had been grazed by Holly's soft lips felt like it had been set on fire. She lifted her hand to her face, reminiscing on the fact that just a little over a minute ago, the girl who she felt strangely already comfortable with kissed her goodbye. She looked down at the black t-shirt clenched in her other hand; a reminder that once again she let something get away. Her head shook the thoughts out of her mind and she walked back to her room where she soon drifted off to sleep.

* * *

In the morning, the sun shone through the drapes in Gail's room, its rays landing on her face, heating everywhere it touched. Her lips curled into a small smile as she stretched her arms over her head and was reminded of the similar heat felt when lips had unexpectedly landed gently on her cheek the night before. She opened her eyes and looked around in her silent, empty room, yawning as she focused her tired eyes on the clock on her desk. _9:18am_.

Gail fell into her regular Sunday routine. She ate, brushed her teeth, showered and then fully prepared herself for last minute readings as well as a whole lot of nothingness; despite having classes the next day, it was her favourite day of the week. This Sunday however was a bit different than normal. She had managed to finish her readings unusually early and had plenty of extra time on her hands. Feeling the need to get out of her dorm, she picked up her phone and sent a group message to Andy, Chris and Dov, pleading to be saved from boredom. Soon after, all of them had responded, each with their own reason for not being able to hang out. She rolled her eyes and over-dramatically threw her phone onto her bed. Gail frustratingly then threw herself onto the bed as well, lying on her back with her arms stretched out on both sides. 'I _could_ try Holly...It wouldn't be weird, right?' she questioned herself. Gail bit her lip and pondered the option for a few minutes longer before caving and reaching for her phone in the mess of covers.

Gail: Take a break from that nerdy midterm studying and grab a coffee with me?

Hot Brunette With The Kick-Ass Shirt: Oh thank God. I've been non-stop studying and can't take it much longer.

* * *

She walked into the shop, the smell of fresh pastries and hot coffee delightfully filling her nose. Looking around, she spotted the familiar brunette at the booth close to the back, her incredibly long and wavy hair cascading down her shoulders as she concentrated deeply into a book that was in her hands. Gail smiled and walked over to the booth, sliding into her seat and catching Holly's attention who had been completely oblivious to Gail's arrival.

"Hey"

"How's it going, officer?" Said Holly, a grin playing on her face.

"So you did your research I see" Gail responded as she waved down the waitress.

"It seems 15 Division has the best of the best" she smiled.

They sipped their coffees and both took part in getting to know the other. Gail was surprised to find that Holly basically already had a job at the morgue lined up for her - due to her father being friends with the supervisor - but refused it because she wanted to complete her Masters and PhD before diving into a full-time job, thinking that the more she knew, the better. She had no idea how much school that usually would take or why anyone would even want to study that much, but what she did know is that the girl sitting across from her was a freaking genius. Gail stared at her in disbelief as she tried to listen to Holly passionately speak about what the job would entitle but her eyes kept landing on Holly's lips as they moved with every pronunciation.

"Annnd you're not even listening" Holly said, snapping Gail out of her daze.

"S-sorry. I zoned out after the part about femurs and bugs and medical jurisprudence" Gail responded, feeling bad for becoming distracted.

"Too many big words for the very police-famous Peck?"

"You were boring me to death" she lied; she couldn't stop herself from being taken by Holly's attractive features. 'You're such a dumbass, Peck. Why do I keep staring at her anyway?'. Gail shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "I don't know if it's your kind of thing, but there's a house party on Friday. If you want, we can meet up and go?"

"Yea, sure. I have a couple things to run through in the lab that weekend but I can totally make room. I'm ahead anyway"

* * *

The taxi pulled up to the house and both girls slid out of the car, following the sound of the thumping music and drunken chants into the home. It was after 12am when they had arrived and only took Gail approximately one minute after entering the house to be offered a beer by a handsomely tall but overly muscular frat boy. She could admit that she enjoyed the attention that the guys always showed her, but sometimes she just wanted to stand around and drink with friends rather than be hit on. After half an hour of chit-chatting with various ill-suitors, she left Holly to look for the restroom.

She thought back to when the two had met up before coming to the party. As soon as Holly had arrived at her dorm, Gail couldn't help running her eyes over the girl's body. She looked absolutely _hot_ with her long legs in tight fitting jeans and her cleavage revealed by her blue V-neck; it was such a simple look and it made Gail rack her brain trying to pinpoint what exactly it was that made her so baffled by the brunette. She couldn't _like her_, like her. 'First of all, I've never been interested in women before. Yes, I could acknowledge when a girl is pretty, but it's never to a point of attraction. Second of all, Holly can't be into girls…no matter how many unsubtle looks she directs towards me'.

Gail ran her wrists under the cold water, trying to cool herself off because just the slightest thought of Holly's body was making her heat up. She walked out of the small room and searched for the girl she had left, soon noticing that she was now with another guy, a frantic expression crossing her face that screamed '_Help_' when her eyes met Gail's.

"Hey Hol, Chris wanted me to tell you to meet him outside now" she explained, grabbing Holly's arm and leading her to the crowded hallway.

"Ugh, thank you. He just about tried every single bad pick-up line I've ever heard"

"I think they have a game of beer pong going out in the back -"

"Oh my gosh"

Gail watched as Holly's eyes enlarged in shock and turned herself to follow the gaze.

"Uh, my ex just walked in so I think I'm going to head out if that's alright with you"

She studied the guy quickly. Green university hoodie, jeans, baseball cap. Typical. "Holly, you could do _so_ much better than him" she scoffed, taking a full swig from her bottle.

"Yeeea, not him. The girl he walked in with"

Gail nearly spat out her beer at Holly's comment. 'Okay Gail, she's gay; no big deal' she chanted. After recomposing herself, she looked over at the pretty red-head that clung onto the guy's arm like a possessive girlfriend. Gail's face turned into a scowl, her eyes shooting darts at the girl, sizing her up and automatically concluding that she didn't like this "ex-girlfriend". 'Still' she thought, 'Holly could do better'

Holly turned back to Gail in panic "Oh God, now she's looking over here"

Gail bit her bottom lip, contemplating their next move. "Hol, I need you to trust me and just go with this for the next ten seconds" she explained.

During the first second, Gail's hands found both sides of Holly's face. At the second, her eyes locked with Holly's gorgeously questioning brown ones and it made her heart jump. On the third, she closed her eyes and leaned into Holly, who was now gripping both sides of her hips, pulling her flush against her own body. As the fourth second came Gail found herself utterly intoxicated by the feeling of the brunette's lips against her own. And for the rest of the time, Gail's mouth began to move carefully against Holly's, chastely exploring and causing a warm feeling in her chest when she felt a moan on her lips.

They broke apart slowly and Gail chanced a look back towards the door where Holly's ex had been. The girl rolled her eyes at the pair and dragged her boy-toy into the kitchen of the home. She grinned and looked again at Holly who was staring at her with lust-filled eyes. "Now we can go"


	4. Kisses

**Hey guys, sorry about the long wait I gave you all!**

**I've been editing this instead of doing my assignment haha whoops.**

* * *

"Do you want to head back to my dorm for some more free booze?"

"Yea, sure" Holly replied as she crawled into the cab after Gail.

"The look on her face was priceless".

"Yea, it was pretty comical". If Holly had been being completely honest, her reply would have been something like _'Oh, was it? I'm sorry, the alcohol and your lips had made me too busy thinking about taking your clothes off rather than focusing on my ex'_. During the ride to the dorm, Holly's mind replayed the kiss over and over again; it had been soft and gentle yet equally incredibly hot. She knew it was fatuous of her to think of the blonde as anything more than a…new friend?...but she couldn't abstain from the thought of building something more; she found herself already wrapped around Gail's finger – figuratively speaking of course – and knew she would walk out of this heartbroken. The other girl had kissed her and been so nonchalant about it whereas Holly's mind kept it forever on replay.

The fact that Gail had acted so carelessly after the party was the reason that, two full weeks and plenty of one-sided texts later, Holly was desperately searching for an explanation as to why she hadn't heard from her after that night. They had arrived at her dorm, drank copious amounts of various beverages while talking about the most random of things, _and_ Holly had taken a cab home to omit any awkwardness of Gail having to share a bed with her.

'_Maybe she was too inebriated that night to fully react and process what she was doing and then freaked out the next day because she remembered I like women'_ she thought, becoming annoyingly frustrated that once again, her brain was over-thinking. She pulled herself out of bed and began to text Gail. _'Okay, just once more'_ she reasoned.

_H: Sprinkle donut and coffee all for free if you meet me at the bakery in 20._

A fully five minutes later – not that Holly had been counting – her phone chimed, letting her know that she had a text. When she looked at her phone she read out the name of the person who had sent her the message and giggled to herself at the name, thinking that she _should_ change Gail's name, _but_ it was true; from what she had seen, she was a dreamy blonde with a nice rack. _'Mind out of the gutter, Stewart'._

_Dreamy Blonde With The Nice Rack: You've found one of my weaknesses. See you in 20._

Holly wasn't one to end things without closure. She needed to understand why she had been ignored and knew that she had to ask Gail if it was because of the kiss or if her dorkiness was finally passed the toleration point.

She entered the bakery and found Gail seated at the same booth that they had previously sat at. On her way to the store she made up a carefully-worded plan of how to ease into the topic of her sexuality, but as she approached the table and saw Gail flash a huge smile at her, she forgot everything.

"Geez nerd, way to keep a girl waiting".

"Is it because I'm gay?" she blurted out, noting the blonde's eyebrows begin to furrow in confusion to her outburst. She continued, feeling the need to clarify her vague approach at the subject. "The reason that you haven't been talking to me…because _you _are the one that kissed_ me _at the party" she justified. "I get it if it's because I'm gay…Wait, no I don't, and I don't know why I said that. It's not like I want to sleep with every girl I meet…Not that I wouldn't want to sleep with you" Holly could tell that the word vomit was flowing, but she couldn't stop her mouth from running and for some reason Gail had yet to cut her off. "I mean, you're really intimidatingly pretty, but we're just friends, right? Oh my gosh, I'm just rambling and I don't even know what I'm saying, I'm sorry, I won't say another word".

"Jesus nerd, way to assume I'm a homophobic asshole. Would you relax? Superintendent's just been on my ass about my grades, I haven't had much time for anything else".

A flood of relief and embarrassment washed over Holly and she waved down a waitress to distract Gail from her long-winded spiel. "I'm sorry, I just thought it may have been because of what happened…Anyway, if you need extra help with school I can probably take a look and lend you a hand if you'd like, you know, being all extremely nerdy and all" she offered.

"Holly, you really think that was my first time kissing a girl?"

Gail's laughter was drowned out by Holly's loud mind. _'She's kissed other girls? There have been ones before me?'_ She raised her eyebrow questioningly.

Once the waitress had left their side, Gail carried on the conversation. "Playing truth or dare with a college crowd under the influence tends not to be so PG, you know".

'_Gosh, I need to go to Gail's parties more often'._

"Alright nerd, when did you first kiss a girl?"

Her eyes met Gail's and she cocked her head to the side in disbelief. _'Here we go, the 101 questions about being a lesbian'_. She sighed loudly, "Really? The typical lesbian interrogation, Officer?"

"Yes really! I'm getting to know you!"

Holly chuckled lightly and took a deep breath. "Okay, my first kiss with another girl was during tenth grade; it was sloppy and terrible and with my best friend at the time, who was trying to help me sort out my 'attraction for the female community' – as she put it. The sloppy grossness was all her; she was a terrible kisser".

"Ooooh let me guess, 'gay best friend falls for straight best friend'?"

She thought about how her feelings for her friend quickly and unexpectedly developed into attraction. "Unfortunately. I should've known that she'd freak out and it'd ruin our friendship though". It was something that she hoped would never happen with the woman sitting across from her.

"What a bitch"

Holly watched as Gail chewed a large piece of her donut loudly. _'What an oddly attractive personality'_ she thought jokingly.

"Was she the one at the party?"

Holly shook her head. "Nope" she said, letting the 'p' pop as she pronounced it. "That was Jenna" she stated, becoming a little bit tense; no one ever talked about her around Holly because they knew she couldn't stand to do so. There was the usual history between two exes; they loved each other and then one day someone dumped the other because things just weren't working out…but when it came to Holly and Jenna, there was history and then some.

As if sensing Holly's discomfort, Gail changed the focus to her. "Fuck Jenna. On a scale of one to ten, how much of a better kisser am I?"

She allowed herself to laugh out loud as Gail playfully winked at her. _'This is going to be hard'_. "Eight" she lied.

"_Just_ an eight!? Holly, my lips and my tongue are pretty amazing, you know. People are throwing themselves at me left, right, and center".

A blush crept on her face, knowing that Gail hadn't picked up on how her words could have been taken wrongly. _'Dammit Holly, stop thinking about Gail and her tongue'_ she cursed.

"I'm totally 100% better and you know it"

'_Yea, I do know it. So much better. In so many ways' _she thought. "Fiiiiine Peck, no need to be jealous, you are the epitome of a good kisser" Holly rolled her eyes.

"So Holly Stewart, sleep with any guys or has it been solely women?"

"You're quite the curious person aren't you? Just one. When I was trying to convince myself that I wasn't gay. Step one: Denial". She flicked her finger into the air and made a checking motion. "Not my greatest way of handling life, I must say. I like to think of all of high school as the "Dark Days" for various reasons. That being one of them".

"Geez, the sex was that bad, huh? And trust me, it was no walk in the park for me either, _but_ give me the names of the people that terrorized you and when I'm an officer I can make sure that they deeply regret it".

Holly looked at Gail's menacing smile and couldn't help but laugh once again. "Easy there, Peck. The sex wasn't _that_ bad, I just wasn't attracted to him; I kind of just did it to do it, if that makes sense. And let's be real, if you keep eating all those donuts I don't think anyone will be very scared of you" she quipped, earning a swat on her shoulder. "Come back to my dorm if you have time, I want to show you something".

* * *

**Okay, firstly, I'm almost finished with the next chapter of This Thing, but I don't know when I'll be able to have it up cause I'm swamped with uni stuff for the next 2 weeks. **

**Secondly, you guys are awesome.**

**And lastly, have a great St. Patrick's Day. Try not to party too hard.**


	5. Sports

Gail watched as Holly slipped her keys out of her pocket and chose one, turning it inside of the lock. Boy did her dorm smell a lot nicer than the one with the hockey idiots she was used to. Due to her impatience, on the drive over to the school campus she had asked countless times what it was that the brunette wanted to show her, but Holly refused to answer her. She was left in a state of wonder to think about what was so amazing in the nerd's dorm room that could possibly be of any interest to her.

Holly swung the door open and moved to the side, allowing Gail to step in first. "Go ahead".

She studied the dimly lit room carefully; though she had only known this girl for a short amount of time, it was clear that everything inside the room was matched perfectly to Holly. On the fridge was a magnetized monthly calendar which was seemingly busier than Gail's entire school year. The table in the kitchen was covered with a neat stack of what she could only assume to be nerdy science digest magazines. In the living area the couch looked fairly new and definitely well kept; not toyed with by a roommate and a boyfriend like her own couch was. And apart from all of the décor she couldn't help but notice how huge the room was. _'Wait a minute'_. She turned towards Holly who had just shut the door. "Single dorm? Really Holly? Who can even afford a single room?"

"Actually, they're more so reserved for the students who are a long way from home sooo that's why I got so lucky".

"Okay sure, but this practically looks like your own apartment room, Holly; it's just a tad oversized for one person" she scoffed, removing her shoes and throwing herself onto the couch. She rested on her back and closed her eyes. "It should be a crime for something to be this soft and comfortable".

"Maybe you should take notes".

Gail tilted her head backwards and gave a cold stare the girl staring down at her.

"See. Point proven" Holly giggled and sauntered off behind the couch where Gail could no longer see her.

Her laugh was infectious; it made the corners of Gail's mouth rise into a smile knowing it was her who elicited such a contagiously wondrous sound. _'Not again, Peck. Stop it'_ she told herself after realizing she had let her mind wander back to the dark area of her mind where many forbidden things had been previously stored.

She had known Holly for about four weeks, yet she saw the girl around her almost every day. Sometimes she would be staring into her mug at the brown coffee and be reminded of Holly's gorgeous eyes and luscious long hair, or unintentionally pick up the shirt which she had been given and remember the softness she felt first putting it over her skin. Every time the brunette came into her thoughts there seemed to be something which made Gail feel content; it was different and weird and she hated it, thus her attempts to keep the thoughts as far in the back of her mind as possible.

"Close your eyes" she heard from somewhere in the distance.

"Already done. If you don't hurry up I might fall asleep, nerd". There were footsteps getting closer towards her and she suddenly felt something hit her stomach. "_Ouch_._ Hey!_" her eyes flew open and she sat up quickly, looking at the abomination in her lap.

"Okay, let's go"

"No, no, no, no, I don't really, like, _do_ sports" she said, taking the offending baseball and rolling it onto the floor. There was no way in hell Holly was going to get her to do anything remotely close to a sport that involved a ball flying at her.

"Hey, that's my lucky ball, be careful with it"

"Hol, you do know it gets hit with a terrifyingly huge stick, right? Is this what you had to show me? Because I'm terribly disappointed, I must say" Gail complained.

"Would you just shut up and get your shoes on"

* * *

Gail watched as Holly stepped up to the plate and set herself up to effortlessly hit the ball on every single try. After about ten swings she stopped the machine and offered the bat to Gail. "Come on, it's cathartic, especially after all the studying you've been doing".

"I would hardly call it cathartic. More like insane, or my death sentence" she replied, shaking her head in refusal.

"It's not gonna kill you to try something new".

Reluctantly, Gail stepped into the batting cage and grabbed the heavy bat from Holly. _'Geez this thing is heavy. Is she super woman or something?'_. She stood by the plate and tried to mimic the position she had seen Holly in, preparing for the ball as she heard the machine's starting button being pressed. In a sudden moment, the ball came flying out of the machine at a speed Gail could only assume was the speed of light, causing her to send the bat flying out of her hand as she ran for safety to the side of the cage.

"Actually, it might kill you".

She looked back at Holly who was in a fit of laughter. Embarrassing herself in front of her new friend was not something she had planned to do on this day. Heck, she hadn't even planned on leaving her bed. "I'm sorry. I feel so humiliated. I told you I don't like sports. And I'm leaving" she stomped out of the cage dramatically, not being able to contain her own laughter.

"Oh come on Peck, don't give up already! Greasy street meat on me if you can actually manage to hit it".

Feeling determined to redeem herself from the recent shame she felt, Gail let out a sigh and entered the cage once again. "You make it look so damn easy, nerd. It's not fair" she whined.

"I may or may not have played when I was younger".

Gail rolled her eyes. "Of course you did Holly, what lesbian hasn't?" she joked as she got back into a crouching stance. "Try not to stare at my ass for too long, I may start to notice you checking me out".

"First of all, no comment. Second of all, I'm only staring because you're standing totally wrong!"

She readied herself for the sound of the machine starting up and the ball that would surely never make contact with the bat, but it neither ever came. Instead, she heard Holly's shoes shuffling against the floor and then she was in front of her.

"Okay, you have the right idea, but you're knees are too bent. Raise yourself up a little and move your feet further apart. Stay there".

She watched the brunette move back behind her. "Where are you-" Her thought was cut off by the scent of Holly's faint perfume and the feel of her hands on her hips. Her body suddenly went still and she attempted to compose herself but it was no use. Her mind was running a mile a minute at the sudden contact.

"Geez Peck, would you relax? Turn your body a little more this way. Ok good. Elbows a tiny bit more up".

Gail took a deep breath as Holly reached around her and placed her hands on top of hers.

"Alright, now pay attention. Back, and then a full swing out. Don't let go of the bat".

She released her held breath as Holly moved her body away.

"Ready?"

Gail shook her head affirmatively and tried to remember Holly's instructions. The ball came flying out of the machine and she swung the bat at full force as best as she could, earning a vibration and a loud crack as one met the other, sending the ball flying in the opposite direction. Not as well as the brunette had done it, but close enough. Her face lit up and she felt more proud of herself than ever for not making a fool of herself again. She ran towards Holly, taking her by surprise and throwing her arms around her neck, jumping onto her like a panda and a tree. "_I did it!_" she yelled.

"You did it!"

Gail was spun around during their embrace and then she released her grip from Holly, landing back on the ground inches away from each other. Her smile faded and her mind blanked as she caught Holly's eyes staring intently at her. Her gaze trailed down Holly's face and to her partially parted lips. She knew what they felt like. Knew that they were soft and moved gently against her own. Knew that she would give a lot of things to feel them again. But not now. Not when she had no idea what any of it meant. Not when she was still trying to put her own pieces back together. Somehow, she managed to tear her eyes away. "Alright nerd, let's go!" she said skipping out of the cage, "I'm hungry and you owe me!"


	6. Gail, Gail, Gail

Holly sat quietly in her last lecture of the week. It was only a review period for her upcoming final exam and would be posted online, but she wouldn't be caught missing it. She never misses class for anything at all, is sure to arrive early whenever she can, often stays behind to ask the professor any questions she may have, and takes detailed notes on the information being covered. It's for all these reasons that Holly finds it incredulous that she just cannot manage to pay any amount of attention today on what the professor is informing the class. The only thing that she seems to find ease with when it comes to thinking is Gail. She found herself deep in a reminiscent state, thinking of the past weekend when they had gone to the batting cages. Gail had given her possibly the most adorable pouting face she had ever seen. She had noticed Gail get cutely embarrassed when she had helped her. She remembered the look of excitement and triumph on her face when she realized she had actually hit the ball and recalled the warm feeling in her chest when Gail enveloped her in a tight celebratory embrace. She couldn't forget the way Gail's eyes, for just a small moment, changed when she looked at Holly. _"Great job, Stewart. How is it that you always manage to fall for the difficult ones?"_ she thought.

After a few more minutes, the professor had concluded the lecture and Holly neatly reorganized everything back into her bag before making her way out of the building. She headed back across campus to her dorm room and pulled out her phone. Her thoughts of Gail were becoming almost too much for her to handle; she knew that she had developed feelings for her, but never expected them to be quite as strong as she felt they were. The phone rang twice already and she prayed that her friend would answer, because if not, she would succumb to more over-thinking.

"Hey stranger, it's been a while since you've called. What've you been up to?"

"Hey Tracy. I um, have kind of just been really busy with school. You know, exams coming up and all. Are you busy right now by any chance?" she asked, opening the door to her room.

"Is Holly Stewart in need of a pep talk?"

She sighed into the phone. Tracy always knew when something was going on; it was like some sort of creepy motherly instinct. "Yes" she groaned in defeat. "Badly".

"I'll be there in two seconds, bye".

* * *

Holly had been lying on her stomach with her head against her folded arms as Tracy knocked on the door. "Come in".

"Hey champ, why are you sulking on the couch on such a beautiful day?"

She raised her head and opened her eyes to see her friend walking towards her with a bottle of tequila. Holly sat upright to make room for Tracy. "There's a lot of beauty in the world" she started, grabbing the offered bottle and twisting off the cap. This was the normal procedure for their deep talks: Holly would call Tracy and then Tracy would appear with alcohol and give her life-changing words of wisdom. She had met Tracy at the school's frosh week and they clicked instantly. Even though they were in different programs, they were housed only a floor apart which made it easier to see each other and keep in touch throughout the year.

"What?"

Holly lifted the bottle to her lips and tipped it up. She didn't drink often and when the burning in her throat was apparent, she remembered why. "Do you remember at the music festival when I told you I got caught up in the restroom helping some girl who got puked on?"

"You wouldn't stop gushing over her eyes"

She shot her a pleading look. "Not helping. Anyway, we've kind of, sort of, been hanging out since then and I mean, obviously I was attracted to her because she's beyond gorgeous, but I didn't think I would be _this_ attracted to her and it's killing me because she's straight, I think, and I'm not" she moped, her words coming out in one heaping sentence.

"What do you mean 'you think'?"

"Well, from talking to her I know that she's only dated guys, but every time I'm with her there's these times when I think we're having a moment; it's all in her eyes, it's like they soften for even just the smallest second, like they're trying to say _so much_ in one tiny look. And I swear to you when she's with me, she's the most honest and amazing person once you get past the sarcasm and odd comments, but after one of those moments she bounces onto a new subject as if suddenly realizing what she's doing isn't normal for her or something like that, I don't know. We went to a party and Jenna showed up and then the next thing I know, this girl is kissing me to make her jealous. Then we went to the batting cages and she hugs me like her it's the best day of her life and I kid you not she lip-looks me all the time. _All the time Tracy! _I'm telling you Trace, she's the most confusing girl I have ever met and I don't know why I'm so drawn to her, but right now it sucks".

"Is this another one of your 'mending the broken girl' situations?"

"Honestly, no. I can tell she has some baggage, probably more with herself than anything else, but I truly feel myself caring for her more and more". Holly began to become frustrated. She knew that she should have never stayed over at Gail's the first time she had offered. She knew that going to the party with her was a bad idea. Going on coffee dates were bad ideas. The batting cage was the icing on top of the bad idea cake. All of it just made her time with the blond more loved and hoped for.

"Tell me more about her"

Holly didn't know how she managed to find a start to describe Gail, but somehow she managed. She explained the weeks after Gail had somehow came into her life and Tracy listened carefully, not once interrupting her friend's train of thought.

* * *

"I see why you're scared and I see why you're flustered by this, but don't beat yourself up over it. You can't help who you end up liking, Holly".

She looked down at her clasped hands and shook her head. "I just wish I didn't help her that day".

"Both you and I know that's a lie".

"It is".

"From what you've told me, it just sounds like she needs a little bit of time. Don't push her. Let her come to you but let her know that it's okay for her to do so".

"And what if I'm just reading too much into this?"

"Then you fess up and tell her that she's super hot and you want to have blue-eyed children with her".

They both broke out into a chuckle and Holly felt slightly better about the circumstances. Although impatience sometimes managed to get the best of her, she reasoned that Gail was worth the wait. Now, all she could do was continue being whatever the blond needed and hope that Gail could learn to see Holly the way she saw her.


	7. 2am

**Heeey guys! Yay for quick chapter updates! It's not as long as I'd generally make it (and it's a poor editing job), but I figured that I had some time before class so why not. Also, you're comments are beyond amazing. It's nice to see that you guys are enjoying the story.**

* * *

She held her breath and knocked lightly on the door in front of her. "Hey Chris, you there?" she whispered, hoping she wasn't being too loud in the hallway. It was past 2am, but sleep was not upon her no matter how hard she had tried to succumb to it. Her week had been full of epiphanies and the broken promises of turning in to early nights. Gail rarely went to anyone when she was in need of help; she was quite independent and knew how to handle most things on her own without seeking out anyone else's opinion because truthfully, most of the time she really didn't give a shit about what other people thought she should do. But tonight, she was done. Gail Peck needed her sleep. She needed to get this off of her mind so that she could make way for her exams which were fast approaching. She and Chris had gone to the same high school together, and in realizing that they had enrolled into the same program, somehow they had found common ground and he became the closest thing to a friend that she had at this moment.

She waited a few more moments before realizing that maybe waking him out of sleep this early in the morning wasn't the greatest idea. _"At least he's getting some sleep tonight"_ she thought. Gail turned and began walking down the hall towards her own room when she heard a door slowly creak open from behind her.

"Gail?"

She turned and saw Chris sleepily hanging his head out of the doorframe, rubbing his eyes as he faced her. "Hey, I um, I'm sorry if I woke you"

"You okay?"

"Can we talk about something?" Gail asked, kicking her shoe against the floorboard.

"Okay, before I say anything I _need_ some alcohol in me. _Please_ tell me you have something" she whined as she laid her back onto his couch and crossed her arms behind her head. All she needed was a bit of liquid courage and sometimes her mouth would never stop running. Most of the time she hated this about herself, but tonight it was desperately needed if she was going to tell Chris about everything she's managed to put together.

When he returned with a bottle of Jack Daniel's he sat on the coffee table opposite of Gail and handed her the drink. More than willingly, she grabbed the bottle from his hand and completely downed the small amount that had been left. "So there's this person…and at first when I met said person, I couldn't help thinking that they were interesting. Said person and I after that have hung out together quite a bit and I thought nothing of it of my curiosity because I thought it was just typical with meeting a new person. But when said person is around me I feel all weird and seriously open and honest and I've never been like this with anyone but her and it freaks me out because I think I like said person, yet it's not really my area of expertise".

"She?"

Gail's eyebrows furrowed immediately. "I didn't say that" she protested.

"Yea you did. You said, 'I've never been like this with anyone but _her_'".

She withdrew her stare from his eyes and focused on peeling the label of the bottle. She sighed loudly before continuing; she was caught. "Remember the girl who I said lent me a shirt at the festival?"

"What does the festival-"

"Oh my gosh, Diaz, keep up, _please_" she stressed as she rolled her eyes.

"Sorry. So it's the girl you met there? Hayley?"

"Holly" she corrected him. "She's…I don't even know Chris. I don't know how to explain her or what's going on with me. She's not a rebound from Nick, which I know for sure…but I don't want to mess anything up and that's pretty likely to happen with all these trust issues and I don't let people in, but I tell her things. A lot of things". It was true. She had told Holly more than a mouthful of things about herself and her life, but it was easy to do so. It was easy to sit and just talk aimlessly for a few hours when Holly was the one being talked to. She never felt judged by her in any way at all.

"You're afraid that you won't get to be yourself around her or that she'll leave, I get it".

"But_ I am_ myself around her. I've never found it easier to be around anyone like I do when we hang out. That freaking scares the shit out of me".

"Does it freak you out at all that she's a she?"

Sure, Holly clearly was a beautiful girl, but never once did her feeling of attraction frighten her because of that factor. "No, not at all".

"Do you think she's attracted to you?"

"She seems like she genuinely cares. And sometimes she gives me these really creepy meaningful stares and it's as if she's looking right through me. I mean, I _think_ there's something there, but she's definitely holding back for some reason".

"Maybe she just doesn't want to push you. If she was going to avoid all of your craziness I'm sure she would have done it already" he said, making Gail laugh. "I know you Gail. You wouldn't have let her in if you didn't want her close. Overall thought of her?"

"She's smart, she's weird, and I like her".

"Then take some time to let yourself understand that she's not going anywhere, but don't keep her out in the cold. She's not going to wait forever".


	8. The Ex

Two days had passed from when Holly had talked to Traci about her current situation named Gail.

She had decided that a studying splurge was desperately needed in order to distract her mind and make room for the possible endless amount of patience she was going to need to have. She felt her phone vibrate and reached across her desk to open her received text, a smile playing onto her face when she realized who it was.

_Dreamy Blonde With The Nice Rack: Hey Nerd, if I remember correctly, you offered to help with my school work. My dorm in an hour?_

Holly closed her large textbook and decided on quickly running into the shower before she left. She began typing out a response as she peeled off her clothes.

_Holly: You're lucky I've already powered through most of my own studying. I'll see you later._

On her way over to Gail's, Holly stopped into a convenience store to pick up some junk food for their study session. She searched the aisles for a bag of Cheetos and chose two chocolate bars from the display before putting her items on the counter for the seemingly bored man to cash out. As she dug through her bag in search of change, the bell above the door chimed, letting the clerk know another customer had just entered, but Holly payed no mind.

"Holly?"

She gave the man the exact change and looked up towards the familiar voice as she took her items off of the counter. "_Shit_" she cursed under her breath, freezing in her place, not knowing what to do.

"Nice to see you too, Hols" Jenna chuckled, making Holly cringe at the way she spoke as if she hadn't done anything at all to her in the past.

Holly shook her head, attempting to draw her mind back into a proper thought process. "I uh-I have to be somewhere" she said, heading towards the door.

"Okay well, call me so we can go out for a drink or something" the voice behind her called out.

"Yeah, sure" she responded over her shoulder before even thinking. '_No! Shit! Dammit Holly_' she mentally damned herself after realizing what she had just agreed to. She didn't want to go out for a drink _or something_ with Jenna. Heck, she didn't even want to _see_ Jenna ever again, especially after the party that Gail had taken her to.

Her head hung low as she waited patiently by Gail's door.

The door swung open and on the other side was Gail dressed comfortably yet seriously attractive in her sweatpants and tank. "Hey Hols" she beamed.

The word made Holly wince, reminding her of her unpleasant encounter not too long ago at the store. "I saw my ex again" she blurted out.

Gail's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Your ex?"

"The one from the party?" Holly justified.

The blonde's eyes widened and she grabbed for Holly's hand. "Oh...oh boy, come on, let's go sit, studying can wait".

Holly allowed herself to be led by Gail into her room. Her hand surrounded by the warmth of the other girl's sent a pleasant shock through her chest and she began to wonder what overwhelming feelings she would feel if she had be touched by Gail's soft hands elsewhere. They sat on the bed and faced each other, ready to talk about her slight freak out. '_We're honest with each other. Always honest. I can tell her the Jenna story' _the brunette thought. Just then she felt the blonde entwine their fingers together and she look down at the way they perfectly fit, her heart swelling with emotion and cursing the fact that she may never have Gail as anything more than a friend.

"Want to talk about it?" Her blue eyes concerningly pierced into Holly's own brown ones.

She nodded her head and took a deep breath. "Yeah, yeah uhm, I just – I don't know where to start".

"You don't have to tell me everything. Only what you want to tell me. Or nothing at all. I'm not pressuring you to say anything you don't want to say" Gail reassured.

"No, no, I want to tell you. I need to just get it all out. I mean, it's better to get it out than keeping everything in, right? Sooo I guess I'll just start then…Both Jenna and I were in first year when we met; we were in the same prerequisite Biology 1 course – nerdy, I know, but bear with me" Holly chanced a slight smile before continuing. "She was the one who first approached me. At this point, I already knew I was gay and I had been for a while, but when we got to know each other she had told me that it was new to her. Of course, I was really attracted to her so I didn't make a big deal of questioning if she was just experimenting. She was so driven, and ambitious, and funny, and I just couldn't get enough of being around her. Anyway, one thing led to another and we decided to go into a relationship together. We were _really_ happy all two and a half years that we were together. She met my family, I met hers. It seemed serious enough to assume we'd have a future together". Even though she was over Jenna, she still hadn't completely recovered and Holly had to fight back the tears that were threatening to fall. "During her second year she got an opportunity to study in Minnesota; I won't bore you with explaining for what, but it was amazing. I wanted her to take it, and she did, but we stayed together. It was hard, but we saw each other on holidays, skyped, all that stuff. After a while, even though I tried not to pay any mind to it, I noticed things changing. She'd call me less and less, tell me she loved me only when I said it first, and go out drinking all the time even though she had never been much of a drinker...We lasted about a month when she was gone. She texted me to tell me that she'd met someone and it just completely broke me. I never managed to get over her, so when she came back home single, we tried again. After a while she decided that things just weren't the same; we became two different people. I wondered and wondered over and over again where everything went wrong; everything had been so perfect between us".

Gail took her hand out of Holly's and wiped her thumb across Holly's cheek where a tear had managed to spill.

"She hurt me more than I even thought I could hurt" Holly added, lowering her gaze to her lap.

"I wouldn't".

At this, Holly looked up at Gail. Her blue eyes were softer than she had ever seen them. "What?"

Gail's voice became a whisper, suddenly seeming as though she was unsure about making her confession. "Hurt you. I'd never hurt you. I'd never forgive myself if I did".

Confusion. That was the first thing Holly felt. Was this really happening? Surely Gail meant it in a friendly manner, right? "And that's why you're a good friend Gail Peck". '_Stupid. That sounded so stupid_'.

"Right. Good friend. We're good friends" Gail began to move off of her bed. "I'm going to grab my books so we can start. Law, Crime and Borders is calling us".

More confusion. Now Gail was just acting strange, and not her usual brand of crazy, just different. Holly had no explanation for the way she had acted. "What was that?"

"What was what?"

"You freaked out" Holly explained, standing up to be at level with the blonde.

"No I didn't"

"You kind of did"

Suddenly Gail's hands were on either sides of Holly's face and the brunette felt gentle lips on her own. Her mind was slow to judge what was happening, but then it clicked. The realization that Gail thought of wanting her as more than a friend sent a shiver through her body and warmth to spread throughout her chest. She let her eyes fall closed and let herself melt into the kiss.


End file.
